Probe allegations against former New Orleans drug court case manager: An editorial

Judges who preside over drug courts rely on case managers to help them determine whether convicts involved in the program are living up to requirements, like showing up for hearings and staying off drugs.

Times-Picayune archiveA case manager in New Orleans drug court has been fired for allegedly taking money from defendants in exchange for giving them clean reports.

The case managers' honesty and integrity is critical for the program to work, and that makes the allegations against Charles Collins troubling. He worked as a case manager in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court for 10 years but has been fired for allegedly taking cash from convicts in exchange for giving them clean reports before the judge.

The decision to terminate Mr. Collins, who worked in Chief Judge Camille Buras' courtroom, followed an accusation by a drug court client who said that Mr. Collins had solicited money from him in exchange for a good report.

In an interview with The Times-Picayune, Edward Bell said that the case manager had demanded $400 from him to remove a warrant that was issued after he had missed a court date. He also said that Mr. Collins charged him $50 to $100 for providing clean drug screenings.

Two other people have made similar allegations, and Judicial Administrator Robert Kazik said that in five instances, lab results for drug tests didn't match up with what Mr. Collins told Judge Buras in court.

Mr. Kazik said he was shocked by what he found out. "He told the judge the wrong information. That's why he's gone,'' Mr. Kazik said. He also referred the allegations to the New Orleans Police Department, and rightly so. What Mr. Collins is accused of doing is not only grounds for firing but reason for a criminal investigation.

This isn't the first time that allegations have been lodged against a drug court case manager. Angela Kirkland, who had worked in Judge Calvin Johnson's court, was convicted in 2004 for her role in a scheme that took money from probationers in exchange for getting them sprung early from court supervision programs.

The scam, which also involved public defender Glenda Spears, came to light when a probationer complained to a judge that Ms. Kirkland had pushed him into paying $500 to get out of the program.

It's disheartening that people convicted of a crime may have been more honest than those who are supposed to be working in the criminal justice system. Judges should be able to trust their case managers, but twice now there have been allegations of wrongdoing by people in those positions of trust.

In light of that, it would be wise for judges who oversee drug court to ask to see lab reports on a random basis rather than taking the case manager's word every time that a report is clean.

Drug court is designed to give nonviolent criminals a second chance, through testing, treatment, counseling and frequent court appearances.

That approach has been considered successful. But in order for the program to work, it's important to ensure that it hasn't been corrupted.